US Detains Pinochet Daughter, She Asks for Asylum

The Chilean government says the eldest daughter of former dictator Augusto Pinochet has requested political asylum in the United States.

U.S. Customs and Border officials say Lucia Pinochet was sent to an immigrant detention center Wednesday after she arrived at Dulles International Airport outside Washington from Argentina.

Pinochet on Sunday fled Chile, where she has been charged with tax evasion. Chile's Foreign Minister Ignacio Walker said in Santiago he expects U.S. officials to take a few days to consider Pinochet's asylum request and he expects it to be rejected.

The charges she faces are related to a broader investigation of $27 million her father allegedly hid in foreign bank accounts.